Hagechibi
"Hagechibi", also known as The Mean Professor, is a recurring background and guest character in Osomatsu-kun and Akatsuka's 1960s works, originating from Leave it to Chota. However, though he is usually unnamed, he is given the name Shonosuke Hijirisawa (聖澤庄之助 Hijirisawa Shonosuke) specifically in Osomatsu-san (2015) where he exists as a recurring guest character and an unusual presence. Overview This character is often depicted as a self-employed man, whether as a shopkeeper or criminal. He is also once utilized as the Come Come Hotel Owner, but considered a distinctly separate character in some sources like the Koredeiinoda website; mainly usually bearing a nose where the Come Come Hotel Owner lacks one, though that could have been in error from how his design was interpreted and inked. Personality & Characteristics Appearance The little character is an older man with a round head, big ears, small nose, a rectangular unibrow, a single buck tooth, and a long and downward-pointing mustache. He usually wears a brown business suit with a blue tie. Personality He is usually depicted as a random and cryptic figure, used for whatever purpose he is needed for in a story. Osomatsu-kun He is a crafty and creative type of man in some of his appearances, such as disguising himself in a dog suit with the intent to rob a house, or working with a myna bird to fly him around to steal. At other times, he's an average guy of few or no words, working as an assistant to others or seen with his own job. When he hears of Iyami's death (actually a scam), he at first acts mournful, but is actually pleased that his childhood bully has finally died. Osomatsu-san Now christened "Shonosuke", he is often a silent figure, mostly appearing as a gag in skits. Unlike the NEET sextuplets, he is employed and a figure of a higher enough status to attend a prestigious matchmaking party. Otherwise, him not having much of a personality and his unusual nature would be the whole joke behind him. However, he and his 16 brothers are shown to become frustrated at the nonsensical and incomprehensible opening speech at the invitational and attempt to impulsively rush out. They also make the mistake of mocking Iyami, which results in their deaths. In the second season's first episode, he is the one to introduce Iyami and Chibita to the Matsunos' "half-assed" fame and their more expansive home. He quickly vanishes through the season, and the previous season's "Hijirisawa Family" setting is discarded in favor of ultimately revealing him to be King Enma as a plot twist in the finale. But this too is done away with for the case of the movie, where he is once more a random nobody (but one never knows, as Enma could still be lurking about). Relationships Osomatsu-kun As an unnamed background character, his presence is often minimal with few connections to others, besides being a criminal that menaces them or a businessman of a sort. One of his more memorable roles comes in Iyami's scheme to make money by faking his death. This man reminisces on how he was bullied by Iyami for his bald and short appearance, being mockingly called "Hagechibi" ("bald dwarf"). He later arrives at the wake, but is disturbed by Iyami emerging from the barrel after being stung by a bee. He is then seen getting revenge on Iyami's "ghost" later by beating him up, after Iyami attempts to ambush him at night. Osomatsu-san As a gag on the banned first episode of the series, the prologue of episode 19 reveals Shonosuke Hijirisawa to be the eldest of a set of identical brothers much like Osomatsu. But instead of being sextuplets, the parody goes further, having the Hijirisawa brothers be heptadecuplets (seventeen), with all their given names ending in -nosuke. The heptadecuplets appear twice more in episode 25, and in a gag illustration in the PASH fanbook for the series. He is often associated with Jyushimatsu as well, due to Jyushimatsu declaring the Shonosuke statue in the first delivery skit to be his "heirloom", which he refers to Shonosuke as again at the end of the Iyami Kart race. History Gallery Shonosuke/Gallery Episode Appearances Shonosuke/Episode Appearances Trivia * While mostly absent as a background character design in the 1988 series, he does briefly appear in the ballet recital audience in episode 4. This is likely due to his role as the Mean Professor, as the audience is also composed of characters from other Akatsuka series and other old manga (as Fujiko Fujio's Q-taro is seen). External Links * "The Come Come Hotel Owner" at Koredeiinoda (Japanese) Category:Male Characters Category:Minor Characters